it took a few days for me to figure out what to do with this partners challenge. I absolutely love the word ‘partner’. I use it in place of husband a lot. Just something I have to do???????????????? he is my partner/spouse/husband/cook/bestfriend. then I thought Jax and I make darn good partners. He is half deaf, I am half blind. It just works. But I needed better than one of us. Plus a photo of us would end up being a selfie and I am not ready for that. Snoop E may post selfies. I may not.

then it came to me. I had 2 very cool partners in my life for over 14 years. They were the Beagle Brothers. and boy were they ever great partners. their partnership started early. they were from the same litter. September 28th 1999. I only remember this as it just happens to be my Babca’s birthday as well, but she was born in 1907.

My very first thought when i saw this weeks challenge was water. Water is pure. I even have pictures I have already taken of water. Easy challenge this week. or so I thought. Unfortunately my pictures involved rain water and Rain Water is not so pure any more.

Over Flowing Gutter

Now that is just where you belong

Watering the tomatoes????

Could that Big Black Beast on the Left possibly be 1 reason my water & air aren’t so pure anymore?

So, getting back to Pure. My next thought involved babies. Can’t get much purer than Babies. Hmmm. I probably shouldn’t go up to a complete stranger to ask if I could take pictures of their kid. I love meeting new people, but that would be a bit Too weird. For all of us. So, Stranger’s Babies are not an option. Then I remembered, My cousin and her wife just had a lil one. I can find pictures of her. But,they would not have been taken by me and it would be rather rude to steal them.

Welcome to the big bad world Reese. No need to ever worry. Your Moms will always keep you safe. Not to mention your humongous extended family has no issue with kicking some butt for you now and again.

Pure? Babies? Babies. Duh!!!! Babies!!!! I know where to find tons of them. After all It is baby season at The Farm. New ones being born every day.

Introducing Spice and her brand new baby NutMeg

NutMeg and Spice are Nubian goats. NutMeg was born a few hours before this picture was taken. Today even. The Mom might not be so pure, but her daughter certainly is. Nubians are highly Intelligent animals, but can have a stubborness about them. Very simlilar to my last three dogs. I had to get SnoopE and the Beagle Bros in here somewhere.

I rarely question my assignment. Today I was given the job I’ve been preparing for. Everything is ready, T’s have been dotted, I’s crossed, and assignments handed out. I am to hang with an 8-year-old boy named Tim. Anna, Tim’s sister just came back over a few days ago. She only had 12 years on Earth this time, but she did her job quicker and better than most. I spent some time with her when she first arrived back home. She will be at or above my own level. She did well on Earth. She gets to rest for as long as she desires then it is off to work she goes. I love how she calls me Will instead of William. I believe this is going to be a beautiful, powerful friendship.

Most don’t take much time off. Some choose to retire, but no one lasts long at that. There are so many people who need our help. Speaking of help I should go down to Tim, my newest assignment. With Anna leaving him for a bit, I have (my) work to do.

Anna made me laugh the first time I met her. She told me she has already been testing her family. She was able to assign her brother, Tim to the Angels’ baseball team. Anna’s Mom noticed that right away, and that night Anna sent Tim a dream. Tim recalled this vivid dream and shared it with his Mom. They were able to smile together. I guess Anna is declining her opportunity to have a break. Only the best do that.

Anna might have chosen the body of a child this time, but she is such a strong old soul, full of wisdom. I am going to be proud to have her as my newest companion. With this family I got assigned to way back when, Anna’s insight will be invaluable. That’s not to say with all my preparation and dedication I can’t hold my own, just that more help reaches further.

Catherine and Emily. For the longest time I thought I had them. When I left my body, they truly believed in me and my power. I proved it to them using that JH dude. Twice!Over the years they have stumbled a bit. I think Emily might be on her way back to believing I am there. It’s taken some time, but she is starting to see the signs I’ve been sending her. I was pretty subtle for a while, then the Senior dude visited. The Senior dude told me to hit her with a biggie. Not too big though.“She needs to WAKE UP!!!!” She recovered nicely from that sign and now I believe I have her back.

Jax and Catherine. Well they are going to take more time. They will be open to me soon though. As long as I have the whole team playing, rookies included. They will hear us. As long as she stays open, They are gonna have to listen to Emily. Since Anna and I teamed up, It is almost as if Emily forgot to lock her door. I am also proud of how outspoken she has become. She has found her voice. This family is very special to me. They have so much work they still need to do. I sometimes wish we could get things done all by ourselves. But then again, it wouldn’t be right or much fun for any of us.

“It amazes me the racket the Senior Man has going on in relation to tHis family. He’s got me working with Anna in Sue’s house, while Clarence is in Canada convincing Hollow to motivate Emily to try on her appropriate funeral attire. Meanwhile Gabriel is in Pennsylvania, reminding Base, to remind Emily about us.” PHEW!!!! Busy, Busy, and Busy.

I’ve been waiting all day for Emily to ask for me to come with her tonight. The Senior Man wants us all there tonight. Everyone!!!! This Anna must be pretty special to him to bring out all stops like he is. I can’t wait to work with her more.

A message arrives, “Well would you look at that? Emily is asking for my help. This is way cool, she hasn’t asked for my help in a long time. I love it when they ask me to visit. I love them so much. Helping them is so much more fun when they know I am around. I know I am doing my job right when they feel me near. They do still have that free will crap the Big Ole One gave them. It is sometimes tough to work around.”

This story was supposed to be about Tim. Everything happens for a reason they say. The Senior Dude wants me to hang out with Tim all day. Or, for as long as he needs me. I must say, I have enjoyed my brief hiatus. Given the choice though, I’d much rather be working and spending time with the ones I was given. They can be so much fun. I feel like I’ve been on vacation forever.

Back in the saddle again as some might say. “I’m just gonna say thanks for the work Senior Man. I am so looking forward to your newest assignment.”

Enough documenting, it is time to visit Tim. I love working with kids. I have always loved them. They are so much more open to my suggestions than the older ones. This should be a fun day for me. Anna’s got her hands full with her Mom, Dad, and sisters. She will appreciate the time I spend with Tim.

“All I know is that this assignment involves the color purple. They never tell me more than I need to know. I just go with it and it all will be well. Plus, in time, when I find everything out, it will be breathtaking. Can breathtaking be a feeling? If it can, then it is.”

When I first started this blog, I had no idea what to do or where to go with it. All I knew was that I felt better when I wrote shit down.

Here we are roughly 6 months later….

I have taken blogging101

writing101 came next

then Photo101

then Life got in the way

I became obsessive over completing Blogging101. See my history and you might understand why. I learned so much from this course. I was wicked new to blogging and I was learning stuff that a woman of my age should know. widgets, image widgets, feature, Know your audience, INSPIRATION…. COMMUNITY!!!!

I did not expect or have any clue that starting a blog came with such a fantastic community. I am very grateful I was led to WordPress. Yes Lily Pup you are to blame for that.

After Blogging101 came Writing101. I am proud to say I did well with this class. The obsession I had during Blogging101 was not present. Damnitall. I read a blog post recently where the writer talks about swearing, I’ve been swearing ever since. It is part of my Distinct Voice, which I also learned about in writing101. I learned so much more than I could have ever anticipated.

Writing 101 is where I received my first bit of criticism. Maybe it was Blogging 101? It truly does not matter now. The assignment was to write about your home. I requested constructive criticism and I got it. It basically said, “show me, Don’t tell me.” Funny how one of the very next assignments was “Show me, Don’t tell me.”

What a peaceful sounding place. I think I’ve told many people the same thing, but I want to tell you also: be more immersive in this writing. You have a lot of good description to work with, but I want to experience it through your eyes, not just through you telling me what is what. Instead of “The entrance to where I am is like a dirt road that leads you through a tunnel…” say “A road of dirt and rock leads you through a tunnel of beeches and oaks to a clearing…” or something like that. Does that make sense?

Then came Photo 101. Another great WordPress offering. I have yet to finish this course, but I have many great excuses. Life stuff took over for a while and I was unable to keep focused on learning about photography. I still have hopes to finish this class, but will do so in my own time.

I have also been unable to keep up with my weekly feature OTT. I have decided none of this matters. What matters is that Today, I am doing every thing in my power to be okay. My goal today and every day is to beat depression. When my head tells me I am better off staying in my pajamas, I get in my clothes and do something. When it tells me, “you don’t need a shower today”, I go out, get extra dirty, have fun doing it, and have no choice but to shower. When someone who counts asks me How I am, I tell them the truth. I have chosen to take the word “FINE” out of my vocabulary.

When my therapist suggested I leave little notes around my house that simply say “BREATHE”, I listened. Now my house has little notes everywhere reminding me to breathe. Breathing is such a simple thing to do, yet so very difficult when I need it most. I have also learned along the way that deep breathing helps with so much more than just anxiety. Provided I remember to do it. The more I do it the easier it is to remember. Everything takes practice.

So, take a minute. Stop. Just breathe. and don’t forget your blog

Duh. I almost forgot to mention what it was I may have figured out? If blogging has rules, I do not think I can follow them. I am okay with suggestions, but I don’t believe I have any hope with rules. It has been 6 months and I still do not know what this thing is about. I am okay with that.

I’ve been Wicked obsessing again. I can’t really focus on random obsessive thoughts today because it is so much more than just thoughts right now. My brain feels like a family size pot of Obsessive Thought Soup, anxiously simmering on the wood stove. OTS should not be confused with LPS or Llama Poop Soup which in itself can be obsessive, but is a completely different kind of soup.

Okay, my most prevalent recent obsessions are as follows….

obsessing over never having finished Photo101. Life got in the way of that and it was put on the back burner.

Obsessing over last weeks Photo Challenge (Close-Ups if you missed it).

Obsessing over this

that

all those other things.

And now I am Obsessing over how many cooking references I can accidentally have in one post.

I tried sitting with the thoughts and letting them go. I tried distraction as a way to rid myself of these thoughts. Old negative coping techniques no longer work so I shall not even go there. I could verbally rant, but I don’t feel like bothering anyone else with my batshitcrazy way of thinking right now. Maybe if I take each named obsession one by one and rant a bit, they will lessen. If I do this right, I should be able to rid myself of these obsessive thoughts, complete Obsessive Thought Thursday (maybe a day early even), do some work on Photo101, and release from my mind the other close-ups I’ve been obsessing over.

I do believe I am feeling an increase in anxiety which may be causing an increase in obsessive thoughts which definitely is causing more anxiety which leads to compulsions…………….OR did the obsessive thoughts start first which led to the elevation of anxiety which led to more obsessive thoughts which in turn led to compulsions……………All I know is I am obsessing. Other coping skills did not work, so right now I am attempting to rant them away by writing. I shall write those obsessions right out of me. Write and rant about obsessions in order to rid myself of those same obsessions. Is this making sense to anyone???? I think I may have confused even myself. I refuse to add to the anxiety by starting to obsess over the # of times I just wrote “right” and “write” or obsess over those run-on sentences I let stay.

Ah, I just took a break for breathing. Breaks for deep breaths are good AND I completely forget about them almost all of the time. How come the stuff that is the best for me when I obsess and feel anxiety are the last things I remember to try? If I didn’t mind bothering other human beings, the very 1st thing they would have told me to do is BREATHE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Each and Every One of them would have said in a firm, yet tender voice, STOP and BREATHE!!!! and not in a loud voice either. I have been doing very well with firm, yet tender prompts. “No, buts, just STOP and BREATHE.” They may have to repeat it. And possibly repeat it again, but it helps.

Close-Up of Toad that kept jumping out at me

Time to stop ranting and writing and hit save. This breathing thing is calming me down. I am obsessing less and think that I just might be able to stop writing for now and maybe eat supper. Who cares when I finish Photo101? I can’t just pull photo’s out of my ass, I mean hat, to match the subject of the assignment in the order they are assigned. Look at this past weeks weekly challenge. It just happened to be close-ups. To start, I went looking for close-ups. After I published my 1st attempt, close-up opportunities kept popping up everywhere. Inspiration can come from anywhere.

Day Seven of Photo101 Big & Point of View. Ah screw it. I am feeling better. Less obsessive, and no anxiety. I am no longer obsessing over finishing Photo101. I also did tomorrow’s regular weekly feature today. So that leaves time open tomorrow to work on last months Photo101 assignments. and I forgot my 5:32 PM Ativan again. So here’s to Obsessing or to Not obsessing. I much prefer not.

I have again been nominated for an award. I do not usually accept awards because I can not follow the rules that come along with them. I do like this award in particular because I love answering the questions that come with it. The questions become part of my “about me” category.

1. What ultimately got you motivated to get started and how long have you been blogging? I have been blogging since February 2015. My archives say January, but that was a minor mistake on my part. My therapist encouraged me to write because she thought writing would help me see things clearer. She also thought that the way I was able to express my thoughts and feelings via writing might be beneficial to others. I met a woman on a web site who had a blog. lily pups life – bipolar and recovery. She encouraged me to try one myself. I did and here we are.

2. Do you prefer to write best in the morning or at the end of theday? I guess I prefer the morning. I like it when it is quiet and no one is home but me. I like to sit down with my iced coffee and just write. Kind of like what I am doing right now. Thank you for helping me write today Suzanne.

3. Do you give like that it’s somewhat anonymous or do you give your blog URL the friends or family? Such a simple question that is going to get a most difficult answer. I like that my blog is somewhat anonymous. My husband has the key, and one very old friend. I let one friend in because I hadn’t seen her in 30 years and thought it would be an easy way for her to see what I have been doing. No one else in my real life knows where my blog is. Although if they truly wanted to, it would not be hard to find. I have shared a few stories with a few other relatives, but am not ready to say “hey here it is!!!! Read it all!!!! My Mom and I discussed giving her access, and we both agreed it would be better if she didn’t have it. Some things she would prefer not to know. When I write something I think she may enjoy, I print it out for her.

4. Did you keep a journal as a child/teen? I did keep journals when younger. I probably still have each and every one of them stored somewhere. Journals were different from blogging for me. Journals were for me and me alone. I shared them with no one. I do not know what I would have done had blogging been an option when I was younger.

5. Are you an emotional writer? Do you write more for your heart or your head? I like to think I do a little of both. I definitely start by writing from the heart, but then my head always seems to get involved somehow. I have tried doing it the other way around, start with my head, but it just doesn’t seem to work out as well. I think my heart is a better motivator than my head.

6. Do you have more blog posts that you have begun (in draft mode) or that you have completed)? I am going to guess and say that the number of published posts and drafts are about even. I have one particular draft that is full of random thoughts and ideas. I sometimes take these ideas and turn them into published posts.

7. If you could/did write a bestselling book what would it be about? I did not have to think about this question for very long. Angels!!!! I would love to write about angels and how I believe they have touched my life and others. Since I started this blog, I have written a bit about angels, but only published one so far. The hardest thing Evah would be my brief introduction to writing about angels. Also, I mention angels in a couple of my Relationship posts.

8. What is the best feedback you’ve received on a blog post? All feedback I get is important to me. I have 2 bests though. 1 would be acknowledgment that something I wrote made a difference in someone’s life. Especially if that meant making them laugh. The other is constructive criticism. I asked for it once so I could improve my writing. I got it and it helped me see how I could make my writing better.

9. Where do you get your ideas for your blog posts? I get my ideas from my daily life. For example, I was cutting down tree saplings in my yard and had to go to the store. It turned into a post called Has the Future been written already ????

This must have been a good day as you can see the crab rangoons on the left

10. What is your favourite food? This is an easy question to answer and it comes with a picture. Buffalo chicken tenders with Jojo’s. If we have extra cash, we will get either onion rings or very special crab rangoons on the side. The crab rangoons are very special because I will only eat them from this particular restaurant. They are 128% better than anything you might find in a Chinese restaurant.

11. What is the best advice you can give your fellow bloggers about how to get new subscribers? The best advice I have is the only advice I have. Engage with other bloggers. If someone likes a post of yours, visit them and see what they have written. If you like what you find let them know that. Even if you think their blog is just not for you, at least let them know you were there. The feeling I get when someone acknowledges something I have published is a darn good one. I like knowing I might be able to help others feel the same way.

Whoa. I am done already. That went quicker than I thought. It took a while, but it did not feel like awhile. Thank you again Suzanne for the nomination. Maybe if I can ever figure out how to follow rules, I will start accepting awards. For now, I will just have to go back and answer the question I missed.

Thursday kind of snuck up on me this week. I haven’t been all that obsessive this week. Thoughts or otherwise. I have been busy. I have been challenging myself more and more. Like 3 ice cubes instead of the normal 4. I have plenty of saved up obsessive thoughts stored on this computer. So I am going to go with one from a few months ago.

Uh Oh !!!! I wicked want to shave my head !!!! and yes I am getting to the point of obsessive about it…. Do I mention it to hubby???? yes,,,,talk about it then maybe it will go away…. His haircut looks nice….I just got my haircut but I DIDNT get it shaved….I want shaved….we should talk about it before I just go and do it . Not like I haven’t done it before….One of the 1st night we worked together we got bored and he was involved with my original head shaving….or maybe it was his day off….I would need to get big earrings as Mom will say….if I did it????Oh Look I can do it for charity

We did talk about it. I did not do it. Talking and writing helped it go away.

I may have accidently hit publish when I 1st started writing this story way back when. That may explain why it says it was published on January 20th, when I published today. It became my First post???? Not my last of writing 101.

With a lot of work I was able to get it to fit with the last assignment. All I know is that I finished it today. and published it today.

Day Twenty: The Things We Treasure Today’s Prompt: Tell us the story of your most-prized possession. Today’s twist: We extolled the virtues of brevity back on day five, but now, let’s jump to the other side of the spectrum and turn to longform writing. Let’s celebrate the drawn-out, slowly cooked, wide-shot narrative. Good luck to all who read the whole thing and I promise never to write this much again!!!! 4189 words

It all started innocently enough. I first noticed I couldn’t feel my fingers. As things progressed and I told my story over and over again I realized it actually started weeks before.

I couldn’t feel the cigarette smoke go into my lungs. I remember telling Jax, “I can’t suck. I suck at sucking.” I was also eating a lot of Tootsie rolls. Every time I generated some Tootsie roll flavored saliva I would cough, sputter, choke almost. I blamed these…

Day Nineteen: Don’t Stop the Rockin’

Today is a free writing day. Write at least four-hundred words, and once you start typing, don’t stop. No self-editing, no trash-talking, and no second guessing: just go. Bonus points if you tackle an idea you’ve been playing with but think is too silly to post about.

I guess I will start at the beginning. Rumi. He has been coming up in my life a lot recently. I should figure out who the heck he is first, then figure out what he has to say. I do like this quote….

“Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.” ― Rumi

For someone who lived in the 13th century a lot of his stuff makes sense today. Especially the wine one.

Okay enough of that crap. I am not looking for extra credit by tackling something I have been working on that is “too silly” Everything about me is silly in one way or another. I have been working on a couple of things that I hope to finish one day. I’ve been working so hard on Writing101 that I have been neglecting my Blog. LMAO!!!! or at least what I thought was going to be my blog.

I have a few unfinished master pieces. I think I may have my first installment of an angel series I want to try out. Writing about angels was not part of the plan when I started this blog. Life happens and things change.

Cool 250 words. Almost done LOL

Relationships are not one of my areas of expertise, yet I wicked want to write about them. I have experimented with writing about online relationship a bit, but I want to write about other relationships as well. Mother/daughter and husband and wife come to mind. Relationships with my beagle could be entertaining. But if you have never owned a beagle, you might not understand. Even after I explain it.

83 more words and I am done. I know that because in 4th grade I was taught about reciprocals. I bet they don’t even teach that math method today. I remember every day we would get the same quiz. Get a 100% on the quiz and no more quizzes. You got early recess instead. I had trouble getting that 100%. Did I mention it was timed? I knew my reciprocals I just didn’t them fast enough. Until one day my teacher watched me. I would go down one column, up the next, down again, and up the last. The teacher suggested I go only down. Top to Bottom. Wouldn’t you know it the next time I took the quiz I got 100%. You’d think I would have learned the life lesson of “taking suggestions” back then. NOPE took me another 35 years for that lesson to sink in.

Uh Oh 461 words. I know it said “at least” 400 words. I have no problem with that. I need help knowing when I am done. That 461 which is now 492 can easily morph into 1004. I wicked like the word “Morph” right now. I seem to be getting a lot of use out of it. 516 is a pretty good number too. But now that I said that the count has gone higher. See that it just went up again.

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wherehaveIbeen?whereamIgoing?

Humor has gotten me through some very tough times. I depend on humor. One goal I have is to make someone smirk, smile, or laugh every day. Chuckles are good too.
You can learn more about my life RIGHT HERE
I've been here since Feb2015 (Jan is a mistake) and I still don't know why I am here or what I am doing.

ALL names in ALL posts have ALL been changed to protect ALL the
innocent.